Gifted children and their parents may feel awkward about the holiday season because very bright children often have unique and sophisticated interests that other children and their families cannot relate to or understand. Unfortunately and almost immediately, gifted children, because of their interests, are labelled “not normal”—abnormal or weird—and parents are accused of not knowing how to parent because their child or children are too sensitive and perhaps too particular. For example, at a party or gathering with new children, loud noises or strange foods that they have not tried before are frightening or repulsive. Unsolicited advice is given to parents in order to help gifted kids be “more normal” or more like the other children at school or in the neighborhood. This simple-minded approach is never helpful. Usually such spontaneous advice just causes shame and humiliation for the parent and child.

Friendly advice or just plain bossiness is........

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